Tyger Tyger
by hannahsmetana
Summary: Neal finds himself in trouble again in a story which follows events from the perspectives of the White Collar Team. Minor cursing, nothing that wouldn't be said before the watershed, at least in the UK. Multi-chapter story, I'll post one a day as they are only short. Could be set any time - no spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

Tyger Tyger Chapter One

Neal jolted awake as he heard heavy footsteps making their way up the stairs towards his apartment. Dammit!He thought he'd have more time. Still lying on his stomach he grabbed his phone from the sideboard, typed a quick message and attached the file. He hit send just as he heard the intruders reach his landing, quickly stuffing the phone into the gap between the mattress and the headboard before flopping back his head back onto the pillow and feigning sleep. As his cheek pushed into the soft cotton he briefly thought how unlikely it was that he'd locked the door last night in his dishevelled state, the thought quickly confirmed as he heard the door fly inwards and angry feet stomp into his apartment and towards his 'sleeping' form.

Two pairs of hands pulled him bodily upright, his arms pulled in front, cold metal cuffs encircling his wrists. He stumbled as he was pushed roughly backwards before he felt his already bound arms pulled above his head,looking up he saw another set of cuffs secure him to the metal fire escape ladder behind his front door. Neal looked down into the faces of his captors but met only stares of silent ire. He felt incredibly vulnerable, dressed as he was in only his silk pyjama bottoms, his bare chest and arms goosebumping slightly, not only from the chill but also from the situation he now found himself in.

"Where is it, Caffrey?" growled the nearer of his two captors.

"What?" he asked, pasting a bemused smile onto his face, allowing his eyes to portray both puzzlement and innocence.

"Cut the crap, Caffrey. Tell us where the recording is and this will go better for you."

Neal sighed as he saw cold fire spark in the eyes that were locked on his. They knew him too well to fall for it, but he'd had to try. It was expected. He wouldn't be Neal Caffrey if he didn't think he could talk his way out of any situation. All he had to do was buy his partner the time he needed and all this would go away. Steeling himself against the ordeal he knew was about to befall him, he took a deep breath as his tormentor approached...


	2. Chapter 2

Tyger Tyger Chapter Two

Diana groaned as she slowly returned to consciousness. Her head was pounding and her eyes were blurry as she carefully sat up, piecing together the fragmented memories of the previous evening. She staggered with exaggerated caution to the bathroom, where she sloshed cold water onto her puffy face.

Suddenly, recollection hit her. She looked up to see her reflection staring angrily at her. How could she have been so stupid? She had to get hold of Peter, urgently. She ran back to her bedroom, eyes casting around until they settled on the assorted jumble from her pockets, carelessly discarded on her chest of drawers. She grabbed her phone and hit the speed dial for her boss. As the phone rang she hurriedly pulled on some clothes, hopping madly with the phone wedged between her shoulder and her ear.

"Boss, listen to me, we need to get to Caffrey, now!... Yeah, I'll meet you there"

Hanging up she zipped up her ankle boots and ran her fingers through her hair before picking up her cuffs, her keys, and, after the slightest hesitation, her gun, slamming the door on her way out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, thanks to everyone reviewing and following the story. Here's the next chapter. And for the reviewer who asked for longer chapters - sorry! This one is barely a flash of the ankle, though it is something I will bear in mind next time I write - this one's a done deal, though I can promise the next chapters are all more substantial...**

Tyger Tyger Chapter 3

Peter awoke to the sound of his phone. Or more accurately, to the insistent prodding in his side that showed that it was actually Elizabeth who had woken to the sound of his phone.

"Sweetie, I think you may need to get that."

Peter grunted heavily before rolling over to palm his phone from the bedside cabinet. Blearily he registered the display – Diana – before hitting the button to accept the call.

"Diana...Neal?...Uh-huh, I'll be there in twenty".

Elizabeth sighed as her husband pulled himself noisily from the bed and threw on some sweats and a tee.

"Sorry hun, I need to sort this. I'll be back in time for lunch."

"Did Neal do something? Is he ok?"

"Too early to tell." muttered Peter darkly, then, smiling down at her, he murmured, "Get some more sleep, I won't be long," before kissing her gently on top of the head and letting himself out the room.


	4. Chapter 4

Tyger Tyger Chapter 4

Clinton Jones had just walked out from the shower when his phone beeped. Towelling the moisture from the minuscule amount of hair he permitted to grow on top of his head, he walked across the room to check who was messaging him so early on a Saturday.

He grinned broadly as he saw the content, then walked over to his laptop and booted it up. While he waited for the computer to load he dressed himself slowly and went to make coffee. With a fresh brew in hand he rummaged through the top drawer of his desk before extracting the wire that allowed file exchange between his devices. Requiring two hands to untangle said wire from the various others lurking in his 'man drawer' as an ex-girlfriend had teasingly called it, he thought again about getting a Mac and iPhone and cutting down on the amount of crap he'd need around the place.

Finally he sat down and plugged the phone into the USB port. Loading his email he thought deeply before selecting a number of individuals from his contacts list, including Neal, Peter, Diana, a few other trustworthy agents from the White Collar division and finally, after some deliberation, Elizabeth Burke and Sara Ellis.

Satisfied, he attached the file he had been sent and typed an appropriate comment in the subject bar before hitting send. Then he sat back and chuckled heartily as he sipped his steaming beverage.


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks again for the reviews and follows. Now here are the answers, or most of them. I'll post an epilogue tomorrow for some resolution :)**

Tyger Tyger Chapter Five

"Please...stop..." gasped Neal, his voice quavering. His wrists were chafed from his futile attempts to jerk free, his face wet with tears he'd been powerless to prevent from falling.

"Look Neal, we know you have the recording. Just hand it over and I promise I'll make her stop."

"Never," he wheezed, as his female tormentor moved close again, hands mercilessly moving from his ribs to his stomach and up to his armpits. "Nooo...," was all he could manage before subsiding into rasping gasps of laughter.

Suddenly, three phones chimed in unison.

"You're too late" smirked Neal, allowing his head to loll to one side as Peter and Diana pulled back, withdrawing their phones from their pockets.

Both agents' faces turned grim as they each loaded the offending message. Neal could only watch their expressions with wry amusement as tinny music sounded from each of their phones, their faces paling as their antics of the previous night were revealed to them via the medium of email. And not only to them...

"Oh God, he's sent it to El..." Peter mumbled, mortified.

"And half the office" noted Diana, glancing angrily up at Neal, who merely shrugged, a little awkwardly given he was still cuffed to the fire escape, and grinned back at her like a Chesire cat.

"I can't believe you got Jones in on this, what did we do to upset him?" asked Peter, genuinely perturbed.

"Well, let's see, who always gets to watch the van while you two run off after the bad guys? And who gets to type up the reports while you close down the leads? And who gets to..."

"Alright, I get it" interrupted Peter. "I blame you for this," he added, rounding on Neal. "You're the one that suggested that karaoke bar after the other one shut, and the one that made the recording and sent it to Jones. He would never have done something like this before you showed up."

"But I didn't send it to anyone else, I was just going to keep it as leverage, you know, an incentive to let me and Jones have some fun. Besides, I was a little tied up while the email was sent," Neal countered, nodding up at his bound hands.

"Hah, just you wait..." muttered Diana darkly, before turning and stalking out of the apartment. Neal sighed in relief as she started down the stairs, he'd feared want to exact immediate revenge, and while he'd held out initially with her tickling, once she'd started on his armpits he'd been powerless to do anything but collapse into fits of giggles.

His relief didn't last very long though, as Peter turned to follow her.

"Er, Peter, you can't leave me like this..."

He sighed again as Peter stopped and turned around, giving the agent a hopeful grin. Peter fumbled in his pocket and pulled out his cuff key, holding it up to Neal's face before turning and putting it firmly on the coffee table.

"Didn't you say that Mozzie's coming for lunch?" he grinned, not without malice.

"Peter...!" Neal's protests were cut off as Peter closed the door behind him.


	6. Epilogue

Tyger Tyger Epilogue

Mozzie opened the door to Neal's apartment just a crack, sticking his face in to see Neal's unmade bed empty. He figured Neal must be in the shower as usually making the bed was one of the first things in his daily routine. He sidled in, turning to ease the door shut with the merest click. Turning back to face the room he practically leapt out of his skin to see Neal standing right behind the door.

"Sweet guacamole..." the exclamation died on his lips as he took in Neal's dishevelled countenance. The con-man had his arms raised above his tousled hair, secured by two pairs of cuffs to the fire escape that ascended the wall. His wrists were red and chafed, and looking closer Moz thought he saw evidence of dried tears on those handsome cheeks. Moz sprang instantly into what he considered to be an aggressive/defensive martial arts pose.

"Relax Moz, there's no one here," Neal said wearily.

"What happened? Who did this?"

"It's nothing, I just sort of became the conduit for some sensitive material. Apparently a little too sensitive for the FBI's finest..."

"The suits did this? I knew it!" exclaimed Mozzie, before walking over to the bed and pulling Neal's phone from it's hiding place.

With apparent relish he opened Jones' email, reading aloud the subject, "We'll be lucky if there are any Survivors..." before hitting the play button on the attached video file.

On the tiny screen he could just make out two tiny figures on stage at a garish karaoke bar – Sing Sing unless he was very much mistaken, and boy did he appreciate the irony – as the intro to Survivor's Eye of the Tiger played tinnily through the phone's inadequate speakers. Squinting he was able to make out the Suit and Lady Suit singing enthusiastically, though not well, as howls of laughter from Neal and presumably Jones could be heard in the background. The icing on the cake was the part where both suits finished their rendition by leaping up and down, arms locked in a 'V' above their heads in obvious tribute to Sylvester Stallone in the Rocky films.

Chortling, Moz put down the phone and walked back across to Neal, tapping him on the chest as he smugly pronounced, "And that's what you get when you catch a tiger by it's tail, mon frère!"

"I know, Moz. Now would you let me down?"

**Thanks for reading all the way through. I hope you enjoyed it. I'm considering condensing this into one chapter now it's all up suggested by a couple of reviewers, though I don't know if it matters now it's complete. Thanks especially to those who reviewed and followed. Should anyone have any more suggestions on anything I can improve, I'm always happy to take advice, or criticism. Either stick it in a review or PM me. Thanks again :)**


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